There are various qualities to our relationships.
Our non-linear trajectory to self-discovery; informed by the connections we are born into, the connections we make or subsequently let go of, and the connections we decidedly keep.
The varying attributes that interplay in our evolving relationships, translate as underlying influencers to our personal growth.
Our emotional, mental and spiritual expansion.
That is the power of connection.
Our relationships with others, initially, inform our sense of self and self-worth. Eventually, our sense of self and self-worth informs the relationships we have with others. Experiences begin to not only illuminate how we feel about ourselves, but also influence the relationships we choose to have with those around us; for better or worse.
For the better, begins when we learn to consciously choose ourselves.
Choosing self-respect, self-worth and self-belief.
The brave choices.
The courageous choices that involve, for many of us, pain, loss and sacrifice.
In a societal structure that thrives when we diminish the value of self, especially in relation to others, we maintain relationships that are for the worse, yet we still find ourselves hoping for the best.
We keep hoping for a changed outcome, despite not choosing to change our circumstance.
Self-sacrifice requires that we deprioritize our desires, passions and beliefs about who we are and where we ought to be. In the spirit of self-sacrifice, we deprive ourselves from that deep sense of purpose that calls us forward. Consciously or otherwise, we move away from trajectories that align us to our individual growth, satisfying a personal sense of meaning and fulfillment.
Relationships can be a form of self-sacrifice, though it is rarely discussed.
The people that taught us pain, and those that taught us joy.
Those connections we now recognize served as crucial life lessons; and also taught us that not all emotional bonds are built to last.
Choosing to maintain relationships that require we self-sacrifice our becoming, is choosing for the worse.
Choosing for the worse is allowing a sense of obligation and guilt to keep us anchored to people and communities that no longer serve us, if ever at all.
It means we are relinquishing our power to choose the communities we service, and carefully determine the communities that serve us.
Communities that will nourish your becoming and potential.
Not easily found, but always worth the sacrifice.
When it comes to your circle, your community, your relationships... don't make those choice lightly.
Recognize the power in choosing carefully.